Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
CA 02537719 2006-03-02
Closure cap and combination of a closure cap and
receptacle
The invention relates firstly to a closure cap which is
produced using the plastics injection molding process
according to the features of the preamble of Claim 1.
The invention further relates to a combination of a
closure cap and a receiving vessel, according to the
features of the preamble of Claim 9.
Various embodiments of closure caps of the type in
question are known, such as in particular closure caps
which, on the inner side of the cap base, have a
central closure stopper, formed integrally on the base,
for a mouthpiece opening.
Among known closures of the above-mentioned kind,
compare for example DE 196 16 000 A1 and SU 1 671 537
Al, the closure stopper which is rotatable relative to
the cap base is not usable for mouthpiece openings of
the associated container which are disposed non-
rotationally symmetrically or somewhat eccentric with
respect to the central axis of rotation of the cap
base. .
With regard to the prior art mentioned, the object of
the invention in respect of the closure cap is seen in
the provision of a closure cap with a closure stopper
which is rotatable relative to a closure cap base and
which is also usable in the case of non-rotationally
symmetrical mouthpiece openings and/or eccentric
disposition of a mouthpiece opening.
This object is met by the subject matter of Claim 1.
In regard to the combination of closure cap and
receiving vessel, reference to the state of the art is
made for example to US 6 550 647 B1. From this, it is
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not however already known to provide a rotary closure
cap with a central axis of rotation.
The object of the invention is in this respect the
provision of a suitable combination by virtue of which
non-rotationally symmetrical mouthpiece openings and/or
eccentric mouthpiece openings may also advantageously
be closed.
This object is met by the subject matter of Claim 9.
On account of this configuration, the orientation and
association of closure stopper and mouthpiece opening
are ensured and simplified during fitting of the
closure cap onto the mouthpiece opening region of the
bottle vessel. Any manufacturing tolerances can be
compensated for by the closure stopper being disposed
pivotably. In particular, an eccentrically disposed
mouthpiece opening can be reliably closed off via the
closure stopper by means of the closure cap according
to the invention. The rotary-alignment part serves to
automatically direct the closure stopper into the
position of association with respect to the mouthpiece
opening.
In this respect, similar aspects also apply in regard
to the subject matter of the closure cap
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Therefore, the
closure stopper, during fitting of the closure cap onto
the bottle vessel, is forcibly displaced, by means of
the rotary-alignment part, which furthermore is
preferably disposed such that it rotates with the
closure stopper in the closure cap, into the
association position. In one preferred configuration,
the closure stopper is formed on a holding plate which
is disposed such that it can rotate relative to the cap
base and is mounted rotatably, in the style of a disk,
around a central axis of rotation of the closure cap.
The closure stopper and the associated mouthpiece
opening may be disposed centrally. The invention has
proven particularly advantageous in a configuration in
which the closure stopper and the mouthpiece opening
are disposed eccentrically relative to a central axis
of rotation of the closure cap. On account of the
closure stopper being disposed pivotably in accordance
with the invention, therefore, even a mouthpiece
opening of the bottle vessel that is disposed
eccentrically with respect to the central axis of
rotation of the closure cap can be reliably closed by
the closure stopper on the cap side. On account of the
configuration according to the invention, it is also
possible to achieve a more reliable closure of a
multicomponent bottle vessel having a corresponding
plurality of mouthpiece openings, in which case one
central mouthpiece opening may also be associated with
one or more eccentrically disposed mouthpiece openings.
Therefore, it is furthermore proposed that two opposite
closure stoppers, with rotary-alignment parts located
between them in the direction of rotation, are disposed
on the holding plate. A configuration in which the
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closure stoppers and accordingly also the mouthpiece
openings are disposed diametrically opposite is
preferred. Each closure stopper can be associated with
one mouthpiece opening of the bottle vessel. It is also
conceivable for more than two closure stoppers to be
disposed for the purpose of closing off a corresponding
number of mouthpiece openings. The rotary-alignment
part disposed between the closure stoppers is used to
automatically orientate the holding plate and, by means
of this, the closure stoppers during fitting of the
closure cap onto the bottle vessel. The preferably
disk-like holding plate may be held on the cap base at
the boundary side. It is also conceivable for the
holding plate to be seated on a latching pin which is
formed on the cap base and preferably disposed
centrally, which latching pin at the same time forms
the body axis of rotation for the holding plate. In
particular in the case of a holding plate which is
formed with a reduced diameter compared to the cap
base, it is also provided that centering formations be
formed on the cap base to facilitate mounting of the
holding plate. Furthermore, it is preferable for the
centering formations and the latching pin to be formed
integrally, from the same material, on the cap base. In
its most simple form, the closure cap according to the
invention may be formed as a press-fit cap with a self-
aligning closure stopper. A configuration in which the
closure cap is a screw cap is preferred. As the cap is
being screwed on, the rotary-alignment parts are
responsible for orientating the position of the closure
stoppers with respect to the mouthpiece openings. The
solution according to the invention has also proven
advantageous for a configuration with just one central
mouthpiece opening. The stopper, which has been
displaced axially towards the mouthpiece opening as the
cap is being screwed on, is held fractionally on the
mouthpiece wall. The further displacement of the cap as
it is being screwed on then merely effects a linear
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displacement of the stopper into the opening. This
counteracts any abrasion in this region of interaction.
Furthermore, the invention relates to a combination of
a closure cap, which is preferably produced using the
plastics injection molding process and has a closure
stopper, and a receiving vessel, preferably a bottle,
which has at least one mouthpiece opening, which
preferably likewise consists of plastics and is formed
eccentrically with respect to a central axis of
rotation of the closure cap, the closure cap having a
cap base, and the closure stopper being formed on the
inner side of the cap base, facing the mouthpiece
opening. To make such a combination of closure cap and
receiving vessel more functionally reliable, in
particular with regard to the closure of the mouthpiece
opening, it is proposed that the closure stopper is
disposed such that it can pivot relative to the cap
base in a plane that is parallel to the cap base, and
that the mouthpiece opening is formed such that it is
raised up with respect to a surrounding vessel cover of
the receiving vessel. It is preferable for the
mouthpiece opening to be disposed in a central region,
which is elevated with respect to the vessel cover,
although the mouthpiece opening does not necessarily
have to be disposed centrally, but rather may also be
disposed eccentrically with respect to a vessel cover
center axis. It is also provided that a rotary-
alignment part, which interacts with the respectively
opposite part, is provided such that it rotates with
the closure stopper and/or surrounds the mouthpiece
opening, and that the rotary-alignment part is formed
on an arc of a circle which intersects the closure
stopper or mouthpiece opening. On account of this
configuration, automatic alignment of the cap-side
closure stopper with respect to the mouthpiece opening
is achieved while the closure cap is being attached.
Therefore, it is also provided that the closure cap is
held on the discharge vessel by means of a screw
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closure, and that the screw closure is not (yet) active
when the rotary-alignment part collides with the
mouthpiece opening. On account of this configuration,
the screw closure can be made to become active only
once the closure stopper has been oriented in a
deliberate way with respect to the mouthpiece opening.
Finally, it is provided that when the closure cap has
been screwed on, the rotary-alignment part is disposed
above the vessel cover and laterally with respect to
the mouthpiece opening formation.
The invention is explained in more detail below on the
basis of the appended drawings, which illustrate just
two exemplary embodiments and in which:
Fig. 1 shows a view of a combination according to
the invention of a closure cap and a bottle,
which is only indicated, relating to the
closed position of the closure cap;
Fig. 2 shows a side view of this;
Fig. 3 shows a plan view of this;
Fig. 4 shows an enlarged section on line IV-IV in
Fig. 3;
Fig. 5 shows a perspective view of the closure cap
from below, with a holding plate omitted;
Fig. 6 shows a perspective view of the holding plate
from below;
Fig. 7 shows the closure cap illustrated in Fig. 5,
but after the holding plate has been
associated with it;
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Fig. 8 shows a plan view of the vessel cover of the
bottle vessel, with an illustration of the
holding plate and the closure stoppers in the
closed position reproduced by dot-dashed
lines;
Fig. 9 shows a sectional illustration corresponding
to Fig. 4, but relating to a second
embodiment of the holding plate;
Fig. 10 shows a perspective view from below of the
closure cap of the second embodiment, with
the holding plate omitted;
Fig. 11 shows a perspective view from below of the
second embodiment, toward the closure cap,
but after the holding plate has been
associated.
Figs 1 to 3 show the combination according to the
invention of a closure cap 1 produced using the
plastics injection molding process and a receiving
vessel or bottle vessel 2.
The receiving vessel 2 is formed as a two-component
vessel and has a discharge head 4, which is secured,
for example press-fitted, on the vessel neck 3 and has
two discharge chambers 6 and 7, which are unambiguously
associated with the component regions of the vessel 2.
The discharge head 4 has a vessel cover 8 that is
supported on the neck 3 of the vessel 2. This vessel
cover 8 is substantially disk-like in form and extends
transversely with respect to a center axis of the
discharge head 4, which is circular in contour.
Two elevations 9, which face away from the vessel 2,
are circular in cross section, form the discharge
chambers 9 and 10 and narrow in cross section from the
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vessel cover 8 toward their free ends, extend from this
vessel cover 8. At the end side, the elevations 9 are
in each case provided with a mouthpiece opening 10,
associated with a discharge chamber 6 and 7, for the
stored medium. When seen in plan view, these mouthpiece
openings 10 are disposed diametrically opposite and
eccentrically with respect to the discharge head center
axis. Furthermore, as can be seen from the plan view
illustrated in Fig. 8, these mouthpiece openings 10 are
formed in the adjacent circle-edge sections of the
elevation covers, leaving a distance defined by a web
11 connecting the elevations 9.
Furthermore, the mouthpiece openings 10 are surrounded
by annular walls 12 oriented eccentrically with respect
to the opening axis, which annular walls 12, when
interacting with the closure cap 1 - as explained in
more detail below - perform a sealing function.
A circumferential strip 13, which on the outer lateral
side bears an external screw thread 14 and which
surrounds the vessel neck 3, extends on the edge side
of the vessel cover 8.
The discharge head, and in particular the region which
includes the mouthpiece openings 10, is likewise
preferably made from plastics.
In a known way, the closure cap 1 has a pot-like form
with a circular contour, an encircling cap wall 15, on
the inner lateral side, bearing an internal screw
thread 16 that interacts with the external screw thread
14 of the discharge head 4.
On the inner side, i.e. facing the discharge head 4,
the cap base 17 carries a disk-like holding plate 18,
on which the closure stoppers 19 are disposed for
sealing closure of the mouthpiece openings 10 of the
discharge head 4. This holding plate 18 is
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substantially in the form of a circular disk and is
held such that it is pivotable and/or rotatable, in a
plane parallel to the cap base 17, about the central
axis of rotation x of the closure cap 1.
The holding plate 18, a first embodiment of which is
illustrated in Figs 1 to 8, has a cap-side latching
bead 20 engaging over its circumferential edge, this
latching bead ensuring on the one hand that the holding
plate 18 is held captively on the closure cap 1 and on
the other hand that the holding plate 18 can rotate
freely on the underside of the cap base 17.
The two closure stoppers 19 are disposed diametrically
opposite, eccentrically with respect to the axis of
rotation x, at a spacing from one another which
corresponds to the spacing between the two mouthpiece
openings 10 of the discharge head 4.
The diameter of each closure stopper 19 is matched to
the internal diameter of the annular walls 12 of the
mouthpiece openings 10.
As seen in the direction of rotation of the holding
plate 18, rotary-alignment parts 21 are formed on the
underside of the holding plate 18, between the two
opposite closure stoppers 19. These rotary-alignment
parts 21 are formed as circle-segment walls which are
disposed on an arc of a circle which is oriented so as
to intersect the closure stoppers 19 coaxially with
respect to the axis of rotation x (cf. in particular
the illustration presented in Fig. 8). The narrow side
edges, facing in the circumferential direction, of
these rotary-alignment parts 21 are disposed at a
distance from the adjacent closure stoppers 19, with a
secant dimension, i.e. the clear distance between two
narrow edges of a rotary-alignment part 21, being
matched to the clear dimension between the elevations 9
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of the discharge head 4 in the region of the pocket 23
formed between the elevations 9.
The closure cap 1, which is formed as a screw cap, in
order to close the vessel 2, is screwed onto the
discharge head 4 in the usual way by means of a
screwing motion of the closure cap 1, with the closure
stoppers 19 being oriented with respect to the
mouthpiece openings 10 by means of the rotary-alignment
l0 parts 21, with a rotary motion of the holding plate 18
relative to the closure cap 1. Provided that the
rotary-alignment parts 21 collide with the mouthpiece
openings 10 when the closure cap 1 is first being
fitted onto the discharge head 4, the selected height
formation of external screw thread 14 on the discharge
head side and internal screw thread 16 on the cap side
means that it is impossible for the screw closure to
become active, since the rotary-alignment parts 21,
which are engaging against the mouthpiece openings 10
and/or against the annular walls 12 surrounding them,
do not allow the closure cap 1 to be lowered
sufficiently far for threaded engagement. Only through
slight rotation of the closure cap 1 or refitting of
the closure cap 1 in a slightly turned position causes
the holding plate 18 to be aligned in such a manner
that the closure stoppers 19 are positioned exactly
above the mouthpiece openings 10. The edge walls of the
elevations 9 which bear the mouthpiece openings 10
assist the self-aligning effect by virtue of the
rotary-alignment parts 21 in this way being displaced
accurately in the pockets 22 formed between the
elevations 9, with rotation of the holding plate 18.
The located closure situation is illustrated by dot-
dashed lines in Fig. 8.
Only once mouthpiece openings 10 and closure stoppers
19 have been disposed accurately one above the other is
the closure cap 1 lowered sufficiently far for it to be
possible for external and internal screw threads to
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engage with one another in order to secure the closure
cap 1, with the closure stoppers 19, during the
screwing-on operation, moving into the space, which is
delimited by the annular walls 12, as a result of
linear displacement parallel to the cap axis x in order
to close off the mouthpiece openings 10 in a sealing
manner.
Figs 9 to 11 show a second embodiment of the closure
cap 1, in which the diameter of the holding plate 18 is
reduced compared to the first exemplary embodiment,
having approximately half the diameter by comparison
with the latter. An inwardly facing latching pin 23 is
formed on the cap base 17 to rotatably fix the holding
plate 18. This latching pin 23 is preferably formed
integrally with the cap base 17, from the same
material, and to rotatably fix the holding plate 18 has
an annular collar 25 which engages over a central
aperture 24 in the holding plate 18.
On account of the selected formation, the aperture 24
is positioned centrally between the two closure
stoppers 19. The way in which the closure stoppers 19
and rotary-alignment parts 21 are disposed and
oriented, and also their respective size ratios,
correspond to those of the first embodiment.
To facilitate fitting of the holding plate 18, radially
oriented, web-like centering formations 26, which point
downward from the cap base 17, are formed on the cap
base 17. In the exemplary embodiment illustrated, four
centering formations 26, which are distributed
circumferentially uniformly with respect to the axis of
rotation x, are provided, with two opposite centering
formations 26 being spaced apart from one another in
accordance with the diameter of the holding plate 18.
All the features disclosed are (inherently) pertinent
to the invention. The content of disclosure of the
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associated/appended priority documents (copy of the
prior application) is hereby incorporated in its
entirety in the disclosure of the application, partly
with a view to incorporating features of these
documents in claims of the present application.
